After stops across the Midwest, new Parkville City Administrator is getting settled in
With a few weeks under her belt at ParkvilleCity Hall, new City Administrator Lauren Palmer already feels at home and feels energized about the future.
“Parkville is a special place,” she said. “Like any community, it has its challenges, but the City is well-positioned to accomplish some great things.”
Palmer, who took the reins in May after a nation-wide search, has welcomed her return to her home state after years spent all over the country and is settling back into Missouri life.
“My husband and I are enjoying life in an urban center again, like going to a Royals game or the museums downtown,” she said. “We love the city, but nothing beats an evening stroll along the river in EnglishLandingPark.”
Raised in Joplin, Palmer graduated from the University of Missouri in Columbia with magna cum laude honors and a political science degree. From there, she received a master’s degree from IndianaUniversity at Bloomington. She served as a management assistant and management analyst for the City of Des Moines, Iowa and as an assistant city manager for Manhattan, Kan. since 2008.
“I had wonderful experiences in all of my previous places of education and employment,” Palmer said. “Leaving for new opportunities was always bittersweet. I could share numerous favorite places and memories from Bloomington, Des Moines and Manhattan, but the common theme is good people who want to build great communities. In college I completed internships on both coasts in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Those are nice places, too, but I learned to love the Midwest. This is home.”
Palmer said her warm welcome in the Parkville community has only bolstered this view and she has been pleasantly surprised by the number of members of the community who have gone out of their way to introduce themselves. Likewise, in City Hall, she has felt immediate support.
“I could not ask for a more eager and receptive staff,” Palmer said. “They have been so patient with me as I struggle to get up to speed on issues and inundate them with questions. It is always an adjustment when a new person arrives, but everyone has been positive about embracing new ideas.”